Some group insurance plans receive health care compliance extension

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act keeps getting easier to comply with, as the Obama administration delays the enforcement of provision after provision. The latest development is that many employers won't have to comply with the health care law's out-of-pocket medical spending limits until 2015, instead of 2014 as planned.

Under the law, consumers are not supposed to have to spend more than $6,350 out of pocket on health care, per individual, or more than $12,700 per family. Many group health care plans will be able to keep their separate out-of-pocket spending limits for the year of 2014, meaning that a consumer could be required to spend $6,350 under one plan for hospital care and another $6,350 for prescription drugs.

This extra time allowance was actually posted on the Department of Labor's website in February, but it went unnoticed until recently as it was obscured by complicated language, the New York Times reports.

The reason given for the extension was to allow the plans more time to synchronize their computer systems, many of which are currently unable to communicate with each other.